Canibus, Rip the Jacker (2003)
Remember that period in the early '90s where the NFL's Buffalo Bills went to the Superbowl 4 consecutive years only to lose each and every time? Canibus reminds me of rap's version of the Buffalo Bills. Wyclef would be the Thurman Thomas fumble, while Stoupe (The Enemy of Mankind) is the Scott Norwood missed field goal on Bis' Bills. At first listen through this album has nothing. Canibus fans everywhere raved about the production Stoupe put forth. And granted, there is new and more complex rhythms on the album, but nothing groundbreaking. There is hardly anything to get excited about here, sadly.
Titles like Genabis and Levitibus turn out to be generic versions of the same thing, songs in which Canibus spits a barrage of braggadocio lyrics. Another title, Spartibus, would have one wondering if Canibus is trying to author a new version of the Bible?
Lyrically, the man still has it: "I'm above average with verbal semantics/ the aurora Borealis in the form of a rap ballard/ they look at me like poor bastard/ why can't you manipulate Billboard with all your metaphor magic/ no matter how hard I practiced, every microphone I saw I grabbed it/ obviously that's the wrong tactic/ I went through a long period of mourning and sadness when I wrote that Stan shit/ but if you want to hear some hardcore Canibus just say so/ and I'll come out the eggroll with seven dead scrolls/ if you could find a better flow then I could find a dinosaur on the Galapagos archipelago/ hey, you shouldn't fall for the naivete/ lyrically I'm the illest when my beats is okay/ food for thought, nutrition for the whole brain/ keep your neurotransmitters warm on a cold day/ I'm ahead of my time or so they say/ I guess that's why I already feel old and gray/ okay that's enough knowledge for today I'm killing 'em/ you better not forget it 'cause this is Levitibus" is how the third verse goes.
Unfortunately, sometimes he lacks all this lyrical prowess. On Showtime at the Gallow Canibus tries to slow it down and keep it hardcore to a Cuban infused beat. The worst part is the hook is full of samples of EPMD and some other rap acts that have no place whatsoever in the beat. The relevance of Canibus' rhyme is all over the place as well.
Poet Laureate II is on another level altogether. This is by far one of Bis' best works. It's a seven minute song of varying cadences and beats and Canibus just goes bananas on it. He crafts a tale where in the future, a time machine will enlighten the world to Canibus' amazing talent. After describing how amazing he will seem to the future, he gives us an example in the form of one of his raps. This track accounts for the majority of its rating below.
Rating: 6 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: If you can, just get Poet Laureate II.
Titles like Genabis and Levitibus turn out to be generic versions of the same thing, songs in which Canibus spits a barrage of braggadocio lyrics. Another title, Spartibus, would have one wondering if Canibus is trying to author a new version of the Bible?
Lyrically, the man still has it: "I'm above average with verbal semantics/ the aurora Borealis in the form of a rap ballard/ they look at me like poor bastard/ why can't you manipulate Billboard with all your metaphor magic/ no matter how hard I practiced, every microphone I saw I grabbed it/ obviously that's the wrong tactic/ I went through a long period of mourning and sadness when I wrote that Stan shit/ but if you want to hear some hardcore Canibus just say so/ and I'll come out the eggroll with seven dead scrolls/ if you could find a better flow then I could find a dinosaur on the Galapagos archipelago/ hey, you shouldn't fall for the naivete/ lyrically I'm the illest when my beats is okay/ food for thought, nutrition for the whole brain/ keep your neurotransmitters warm on a cold day/ I'm ahead of my time or so they say/ I guess that's why I already feel old and gray/ okay that's enough knowledge for today I'm killing 'em/ you better not forget it 'cause this is Levitibus" is how the third verse goes.
Unfortunately, sometimes he lacks all this lyrical prowess. On Showtime at the Gallow Canibus tries to slow it down and keep it hardcore to a Cuban infused beat. The worst part is the hook is full of samples of EPMD and some other rap acts that have no place whatsoever in the beat. The relevance of Canibus' rhyme is all over the place as well.
Poet Laureate II is on another level altogether. This is by far one of Bis' best works. It's a seven minute song of varying cadences and beats and Canibus just goes bananas on it. He crafts a tale where in the future, a time machine will enlighten the world to Canibus' amazing talent. After describing how amazing he will seem to the future, he gives us an example in the form of one of his raps. This track accounts for the majority of its rating below.
Rating: 6 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: If you can, just get Poet Laureate II.
posted by Sean at 10:36 PM
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